249: Chapter 248 Sword Type

The night was as dark as ink, and Red Fire Peak was shrouded in a faint spiritual mist.

Jiang Hanzhou sat cross-legged in his cultivation room. The four True Intents within him moved through his Meridians like four flood dragons, sometimes blending and sometimes clashing.

His brows furrowed slightly. He had been regulating his breathing for four hours, yet he still couldn't completely suppress the irritation sparked by Han Qing's challenge.

Knock, knock, knock—

Three light knocks, perfectly measured.

Jiang Hanzhou opened his eyes. After a sweep of his Divine Sense, his brows rose.

What is she doing here at this hour?

He stood up and opened the stone door. Teng Yuzhi stood in the moonlight wearing a green robe, holding a roll of yellowed notes, her expression uncharacteristically solemn.

"Junior Sister?" Jiang Hanzhou stepped aside to let her in. "Come in and speak."

Teng Yuzhi stepped into the room, her gaze sweeping over the simple furnishings before finally resting on Jiang Hanzhou's face.

After a moment of silence, she handed over the notes. "Master asked me to deliver this."

"Master Qingxuan?"

Jiang Hanzhou took the notes. Upon touching them, he felt a warm ripple of spiritual power; they had clearly been sealed with a special technique.

He flipped to the first page, and his pupils suddenly constricted.

The notes were densely packed with tiny characters, all recording intelligence on Han Qing, a Core Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak.

From his entry examination to his most recent seclusion, every detail was included.

"This is..." Jiang Hanzhou looked up at Teng Yuzhi.

"Master said that since you ruined Heavenly Sword Peak's plans, Han Qing will never let the matter rest." Teng Yuzhi walked to the window and stood with her back to him, her voice unnaturally calm. "At the Sword Discussion Assembly, he will kill you at any cost."

Jiang Hanzhou didn't answer immediately but continued leafing through the notes. The more he read, the more chilled he felt.

Han Qing, the chief Disciple under Cold Frost Master of Heavenly Sword Peak, had been with the Sect for seventeen years and was at the Peak of the Primal Form Realm.

On the surface, he was a Genius with outstanding talent who cultivated step by step.

However, the information gathered by Master Qingxuan showed that Han Qing's rate of advancement had suddenly surged in the last three years. Specifically, his Sword Intent, which was originally a simple Golden Sharpness True Intent, had inexplicably gained a disturbing quality.

"He refined half a Sword Seed." Teng Yuzhi turned around and looked directly into Jiang Hanzhou's eyes.

"A Sword Seed?" Jiang Hanzhou's heart jolted.

Heavenly Sword Peak of Dragon Abyss Palace possessed a closely guarded secret—the Sword Seed Legacy.

It was an object of Origin condensed from the lifelong Sword Intent of past sword Dao Masters before their passing. Once refined, one could directly inherit the Sword Intent, saving decades of bitter cultivation.

But Sword Seeds were rare; only those who had rendered great service to the Sect could be granted one.

"Half a Sword Seed," Teng Yuzhi emphasized. "A fragmented one, said to be left behind by the Heavenly Sword Peak Elder 'Zhankongzi' three hundred years ago. The complete Sword Seed should have been inherited by Ao Zhan, but Han Qing used unknown means to obtain the other half of the fragment and refined it."

Jiang Hanzhou's brows furrowed. Half a fragment meant the Sword Intent Han Qing inherited was incomplete, but also more violent and difficult to control. This, in turn, made his sword style even more erratic and unpredictable.

"That's not all." Teng Yuzhi pointed to several pages in the middle of the notes. "He has been secretly practicing the Ten Thousand Gu Sect's 'Sword Gu Secret Technique'."

Jiang Hanzhou flipped to those pages. Master Qingxuan's handwriting was noticeably more cautious there, with some parts even marked in code.

The so-called Sword Gu was an evil technique that fused Gu insects with Sword Intent.

The practitioner uses their own essence blood to rear a strange insect called the "Intent-Devouring Gu," then combines it with Sword Intent to form a bizarre half-Gu, half-sword attack. Most terrifyingly, the Intent-Devouring Gu specifically feeds on an opponent's martial True Intent—when the sword is drawn, the Gu insect follows the Sword Qi into the enemy's body, silently devouring their True Intent Foundation.

"Quite a few people practice this secret art," Jiang Hanzhou said thoughtfully. "This alone isn't enough to prove he's colluding with the Ten Thousand Gu Sect."

Teng Yuzhi glanced at him with a hint of approval. "Master thinks so too. Han Qing is very clever; the trump cards he chose are all 'explainable.' Half a Sword Seed could be a reward from the Sect; the Sword Gu Secret Technique could be a fragment bought from the black market. Even if someone investigates, he can just attribute it to a 'fortuitous encounter'."

"But at the Sword Discussion Assembly," Jiang Hanzhou said slowly, "these trump cards are enough to kill me."

"So Master asked me to tell you," Teng Yuzhi took two steps closer and lowered her voice, "that something capable of suppressing the Sword Gu is hidden in the core area of Dragon Slaying True Person's Immortal Cave."

Jiang Hanzhou's gaze sharpened.

"The Dragon Qi of the vile dragon that Dragon Slaying True Person killed back then was nearly immortal. The True Person used supreme Sword Intent to Seal it, and that Sword Intent has slept in the depths of the Immortal Cave for thousands of years, still remaining today." Teng Yuzhi said word by word, "The 'dragon slaying' True Intent contained within that Sword Intent is the bane of all Gu insects. No matter how strong the Intent-Devouring Gu is, it cannot withstand the will left behind by Dragon Slaying True Person."

"Isn't the Immortal Cave already closed?" Jiang Hanzhou remembered that after Dragon Slaying True Person's Immortal Cave appeared, only Martial Artists below the Primal Elephant Realm could enter, and it had long since shut.

"The outer Immortal Cave is closed, but the core area has never truly been opened." Teng Yuzhi took a jade Talisman from her robes and placed it on the table. "This is a 'Dragon Slaying Talisman' Master brought out from the Immortal Cave. Holding this Talisman on the night of a full moon allows one to sense the entrance to the core area. The next full moon is in three days."

Jiang Hanzhou stared at the jade Talisman on the table for a long time.

"Why is Master Qingxuan helping me?" he asked.

Teng Yuzhi lowered her eyes. "Master said that the balance of Dragon Abyss Palace should not be controlled solely by Heavenly Sword Peak. The rise of Red Fire Peak is a good thing for the Sect. Besides..." she paused, "the Ten Thousand Gu Sect's shadow is behind Blood Shark Island. If Han Qing is truly colluding with them, it will eventually bring disaster to the entire East Sea. Master does not want to see that day."

Jiang Hanzhou put away the notes and the jade Talisman, then solemnly cupped his fists. "Please thank the Immortal Master for me."

Teng Yuzhi nodded and turned to leave, but then stopped. "Senior Brother, Han Qing will not hold back at the Sword Discussion Assembly. What you need to do is not to defeat him, but to stay alive."

With that, she pushed the door open and vanished into the night.

Jiang Hanzhou sat alone in the room, the notes spread across his knees, his gaze falling on the description of the Sword Gu.

The Intent-Devouring Gu feeds on martial True Intent; once it has devoured everything, the host becomes a cripple.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the chill in his heart, and turned to look at the tiger soul saber lying horizontally on the table.

The blade was dark red, with faint tiger patterns flowing across it. This was a precious saber forged by Iron Madman of the Hundred Refinements Workshop using the spine of a Red-Eyed Blood Tiger as the primary material. It had accompanied him through the White Dragon Gang, the Evil Ghost Bandits, and the Dragon Abyss Palace examination, slaying powerful enemies along the way without its edge ever dulling.

But facing the power of Han Qing's Sword Seed and the evil Sword Gu technique, the tiger soul was already showing its limitations.

Jiang Hanzhou recalled the "natal heart artifact" recorded in the Heart Furnace Artifact Forging Art.

It involved using one's own True Intent as furnace fire and one's thoughts as a hammer to forge martial will into a weapon, allowing it to give birth to intelligence and become one with the Master's mind.

He had always felt the time wasn't right, as his four True Intents had not yet fully fused, and a premature attempt at forging might end in failure. But now, he couldn't wait any longer.

"I'll use you." Jiang Hanzhou gripped the tiger soul. The blade hummed as if in response.

He closed his eyes, and the four True Intents within him surged simultaneously.

The softness of Tide, the intensity of Pure Yang, the sharpness of Metal Sharpness, and the volatility of Heavenly Fire. Guided by his thoughts, these four distinct powers slowly converged and poured into the blade of the tiger soul.

Inside the cultivation room, the temperature rose sharply.

The Tidal True Intent was like water, soaking the blade to make it flexible; the Pure Yang True Intent was like a scorching sun, burning away Impurities to make it pure; the Metal Sharpness True Intent was like a whetstone, honing the edge to make it sharp; and the Heavenly Fire True Intent was like a furnace, tempering its form to make it transform.

Four-colored brilliance flowed and intertwined on the blade, sometimes merging and sometimes repelling each other. Veins bulged on Jiang Hanzhou's forehead as his Divine Soul power poured out, forcibly pressing the four True Intents into the saber.

"Fuse!"

He gave a low shout and formed hand Seals. A phantom of the Heart Furnace emerged from his palms, swallowing the entire tiger soul within it.

The Heart Furnace Artifact Forging Art emphasized using the heart as the furnace and intent as the fire. Jiang Hanzhou had only been able to forge ordinary weapons before; today, in his first attempt at a natal heart artifact, he realized the danger—the four True Intents were rampaging inside the saber, nearly tearing the blade apart.

The tiger soul saber let out a strained wail as fine cracks appeared on the blade.

Jiang Hanzhou's heart tightened. Just as he was about to forcibly stop, he suddenly remembered a line annotated by Master Qingxuan in the notes: "The conflict of True Intents lies not in strength, but in sequence. Tide as the Foundation, Pure Yang as the fire, Metal Sharpness as the edge, and Heavenly Fire as the change."

He was suddenly enlightened.

It wasn't about merging them all at once, but forging them in sequence.

Jiang Hanzhou redeployed his True Intents, using Tide as the Foundation to construct pathways within the blade; Pure Yang followed, using its heat to melt and mold the pathways; Metal Sharpness became the edge, outlining the blade along the pathways; and finally, Heavenly Fire descended, carving unpredictable patterns onto the blade's surface.

The four True Intents each performed their duties, no longer clashing but instead complementing one another.

The wailing of the tiger soul saber gradually subsided, replaced by a clear, resonant hum—like a tiger roaring in the mountains or a Dragon crying in the highest heavens.

The cracks on the blade began to heal, and with each one that closed, a new pattern was born. Those patterns were like the rising and falling of the Tide, the sun hanging high in the sky, the unsheathing of a blade, and a prairie fire of Heavenly Fire. The four imageries surfaced alternately before finally merging into one.

Jiang Hanzhou felt something awakening within the saber.

It was a vague consciousness—chaotic and ignorant, yet possessing an instinctive closeness to him. It was like a newborn beast that had just opened its eyes, curiously perceiving the world.

"It's done," Jiang Hanzhou murmured.

The Heart Furnace dissipated, and the tiger soul saber hung in mid-air, its entire body flowing with four-colored brilliance. The tiger patterns on the blade came to life, transforming into a phantom of a crimson-gold tiger with fire in its eyes. It circled the blade once before vanishing into the hilt.

Jiang Hanzhou reached out and gripped the hilt, a feeling of blood connection surging in his heart.

The vague consciousness within the saber sent out affectionate emotions, as if calling him "Master." With a thought, Tide patterns automatically appeared on the edge; with another thought, Pure Yang True Intent flooded the blade, making the entire saber as scorching as the sun.

"From now on, you and I are one."

The tiger soul saber hummed in response, the Heavenly Fire patterns on its body flickering as if in joy.

Jiang Hanzhou sheathed the saber and let out a long breath of turbid Qi. With the natal heart artifact forged, his strength had risen another level.

More importantly, with this saber that was connected to his mind, his confidence in facing Han Qing had increased.

But he did not relax because of this.

The description of the Sword Gu in Master Qingxuan's notes was too terrifying; since Han Qing dared to use it at the Sword Discussion Assembly, he must be completely confident.

Even if the dragon slaying Sword Intent could suppress the Gu insects, he still had to enter the core area of the Immortal Cave to obtain that Sword Intent first.

"In three days, on the night of the full moon." Jiang Hanzhou looked at the crescent moon outside the window, calculating in his mind.

The Sword Discussion Assembly was set for seven days later; he still had time.

For the next three days, Jiang Hanzhou spent his days in the cultivation room consolidating his natal heart artifact and his nights quietly heading to the outskirts of Dragon Slaying True Person's Immortal Cave, using the Dragon Slaying Talisman to sense the location of the core area.

The first night, he found nothing.

On the second night, he sensed a faint ripple of Sword Intent among the underwater reefs on the west side of the Immortal Cave, but it quickly dissipated.

Until the third night, the full moon.

A full moon hung over the East Sea, its silver glow spilling onto the surface and illuminating the entire area as if it were day.

Holding the Dragon Slaying Talisman, Jiang Hanzhou stood on a reef. A strong resonance came from the Talisman, pointing toward an underwater abyss to the southeast. He took a deep breath, activated the Fish Dragon Transformation, and leaped into the sea.

The seawater was icy. Moonlight penetrated the surface, casting mottled shadows on the seabed.

Jiang Hanzhou dove all the way down, passing through layers of undercurrents, and finally stopped before an underwater rift. The rift was about ten zhang wide and bottomless, with Sword Qi faintly leaking out, making his skin sting.

The Dragon Slaying Talisman vibrated violently in his hand, nearly flying out of his grip.

This was the place.

Jiang Hanzhou gripped the Talisman tightly and leaped into the rift.

Falling, continuously falling.

It grew darker and darker, yet the Sword Qi became more and more intense. Those Sword Qi were like invisible blades, cutting into his Protective Aura and producing a piercing grinding sound.

After an unknown amount of time, his feet finally touched solid ground.

In the darkness, a speck of light lit up.

It was a sword—no, to be precise, it was a Sword Intent solidified in the Void Realm.

It was shaped like an ancient sword, entirely pitch-black, with two simple characters carved on the blade: dragon slaying.

Jiang Hanzhou stood before the Sword Intent, as small as an ant.

That Sword Intent had no physical form, yet it was sharper than any divine weapon. It hung there quietly, as if sleeping, or perhaps waiting.

He tried to touch it with his Divine Soul and was instantly pulled into a vast space of consciousness.

In that space, a black Dragon blotted out the sun, its Dragon might like an overturning mountain, making it hard to breathe. The black Dragon opened its mouth, and a Dragon breath capable of swallowing an entire city poured down.

A white-robed swordsman stood in the Void Realm. Facing the Dragon breath, he struck only once.

That strike had no brilliant radiance or world-shaking momentum. It was just a simple downward slash, yet it made time freeze and space shatter.

The black Dragon's roar stopped abruptly as its massive body split down the middle. Dragon blood poured out like a waterfall, dyeing the entire sky red.

The white-robed swordsman sheathed his sword and turned around, his gaze seemingly piercing through time and space to rest on Jiang Hanzhou.

"Gu?" he spoke, his voice flat. "A trivial trick."

As his voice fell, the Sword Intent dissipated.

Jiang Hanzhou suddenly snapped back to his senses and found himself covered in tears.

The "dragon slaying" True Intent within that Sword Intent did not merely suppress Gu insects; it fundamentally negated all heterodox paths.

No matter your thousand transformations or ten thousand evil techniques, I shall strike them down with a single sword.

This was a pure sword Dao will, unadulterated by any Impurities.

Jiang Hanzhou sat cross-legged and closed his eyes to comprehend.

He didn't need to learn the sword; he only needed to understand that "slaying" will.

By integrating this will into his own saber and his own True Intent, any Gu insect or evil technique would be reduced to ashes under that single slash.

In the underwater rift, time passed.

When Jiang Hanzhou opened his eyes again, the aura on his body had undergone a subtle change.

The four True Intents still flowed within him, but they now possessed an indescribable quality—the "slaying" will, integrated into his bones and blood, carved into his Divine Soul.

He stood up and bowed deeply toward the solidified Sword Intent.

The Sword Intent vibrated slightly as if in response, then slowly dissipated, turning into specks of starlight that merged into the seawater.

By the time Jiang Hanzhou surfaced, the horizon was already turning pale.

He gripped the tiger soul saber at his waist. The intelligence within the saber sent out excited emotions, seemingly sensing the brand-new power within its Master.

"Sword Discussion Assembly," Jiang Hanzhou looked toward the direction of Dragon Abyss Palace, his gaze calm. "I am waiting for you."